Author: Matthew Liedke

Journalist and film critic in Minnesota. Graduate of Rainy River College and Minnesota State University in Moorhead. Outside of movies I also enjoy sports, craft beers and the occasional video game.

Victor Frankenstein review

Director:
Paul McGuigan
Cast:
Daniel Radcliffe
Jessica Brown Findlay
Bronson Webb
James McAvoy
Rated: PG-13

While “Victor Frankenstein” references the famous mad scientist, this retelling actually takes place from Igor’s (Radcliffe) perspective. The movie begins with Igor working as a clown and amateur doctor at the circus. His whole life changes, though, when he meets Victor (McAvoy), who sees his medical techniques.

After the two meet, Frankenstein decides to bring Igor with him to help with scientific experiments to reanimate dead tissue.

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The Good Dinosaur review

Director:
Peter Sohn
Cast:
Raymond Ochoa
Jack Bright
Sam Elliot
Jeffrey Wright
Frances McDormand
Rated: PG

“The Good Dinosaur” follows the story of what appears to be a young brachiosaurus (even though it never clarifies) who is the smallest in his family. The young dinosaur named Arlo (Ochoa) tries help his family with chores but keeps messing up. Things get worse when he is swept away in a river by a storm.

This leaves Arlo stranded and needing to find his way back to his family with the only help coming from a young human boy.

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REVIEW: ‘Creed’

Director:
Ryan Coogler
Cast:
Michael B. Jordan
Sylvester Stallone
Tessa Thompson
Phylicia Rashad
Tony Bellew
Rated: PG-13

“Creed” takes place a few years after the events of 2006’s “Rocky Balboa” and this time around, the Italian Stallion doesn’t step into the ring. Instead, the film focuses on Adonis Johnson (Jordan), the illegitimate son of Rocky’s (Stallone) friend and boxing rival Apollo Creed.

Adonis grew up mostly in group homes and juvenile detention centers for his tendencies to fight until he was adopted by Apollo’s widowed wife Mary Ann (Rashad). As he reaches adulthood, though, he still has a drive to fight, this time in the ring, and decides to find the former Champion Rocky Balboa to be his trainer.

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The Night Before review

Director:
Jonathan Levine
Cast:
Joseph Gordon-Levitt
Seth Rogen
Anthony Mackie
Jillian Bell
Michael Shannon
Rated: R

Joseph Gordon-Levitt plays a man named Ethan in “The Night Before,” an average guy who has a tradition of going out the night before Christmas with his two friends Isaac (Rogen) and Chris (Mackie). The tradition was started just after Ethan’s parents died in 2001 and has carried on throughout the years.

The film picks up with the three friends deciding that the current Christmas Eve would be their last night out, though, as life is pulling them in different directions. Because of this, they decide to make it the best night possible by making it to a legendary party.

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The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 2 review

Director:
Francis Lawrence
Cast:
Jennifer Lawrence
Josh Hutcherson
Liam Hemsworth
Woody Harrelson
Donald Sutherland
Philip Seymour Hoffman
Julianne Moore
Elizabeth Banks
Mahershala Ali
Jeffrey Wright
Rated: PG-13

“The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 2” wastes no time getting started. There’s no flashback or ‘last time.’ The film opens up with Katniss Everdeen’s throat still injured after being attacked by a brainwashed Peeta Mellark (Hutcherson). Despite the injury giving her a raspy voice, though, it doesn’t hold her back from still being involved in the rebellion.

After some preliminary work, Everdeen joins a unit that includes Gale (Hemsworth) as well as Boggs (Ali) and is set to storm the Capitol and put an end to President Snow (Sutherland). The invasion process is met with a heavy challenge, though, when the Capitol inserts traps from the Hunger Games.

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Spotlight review

Director:
Tom McCarthy
Cast:
Mark Ruffalo
Michael Keaton
Rachel McAdams
Liev Schrieber
John Slattery
Brian d’Arcy James
Rated: R

“Spotlight” follows the titular investigative journalism team at the Boston Globe in the early 2000s when the reporters uncovered a massive child molestation cover-up within the Catholic Church.

The film picks up when new editor Marty Baron (Schreiber) tasks the Spotlight team, which includes Mike Rezendes (Ruffalo), Walter Robinson (Keaton), Sacha Pfeiffer (McAdams) and Matt Carroll (James), with digging deeper into the cover-up by the church which had been reported on to a smaller extent beforehand.

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Love the Coopers review

Director:
Jessie Nelson
Cast:
Diane Keaton
John Goodman
Ed Helms
Amanda Seyfried
Alan Arkin
Olivia Wilde
Anthony Mackie
Marisa Tomei
June Squibb
Jake Lacy
Rated: PG-13

“Love the Coopers” is a story of a large extended family who are, for the most part, all dreading a Christmas Eve dinner where everyone gets together. The two main characters of the film are Charlotte (Keaton) and Sam (Goodman), a couple who’ve been married for 40 years, however, their relationship is falling apart. This holiday stress coincides with their son Hank (Helms) losing his job, having a strained relationship with his ex-wife and children and their daughter, Eleanor (Wilde) meeting a soldier named Joe at an airport and developing a friendship with him.

These plot threads and more, such as one of Hank’s sons having a teen romance and another where Charlotte’s sister Emma (Tomei) being arrested ,develop for much of the film’s first half until they converge when everyone meets for Christmas.

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The Peanuts Movie review

Director:
Steve Martino
Cast:
Noah Schnapp
Hadley Belle Miller
Francesca Capaldi
Alexander Garfin
Rated: G

It’s a full length feature Charlie Brown!

In this computer animated film based off the classic Schulz comic, Charlie Brown (Schnapp) has a goal of winning the affections of a young girl who just moved to the neighborhood and is in his class.

As usual, though, Charlie runs into troubles, whether they be of his own or other people’s doing.

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REVIEW: ‘Spectre’ (007)

Director:
Sam Mendes
Cast:
Daniel Craig
Christoph Waltz
Lea Seydoux
Ralph Fiennes
Ben Whishaw
Naomie Harris
Rated: PG-13

James Bond (Craig) is back and in “Spectre,” the latest in the 007 franchise, and is investigating a lead from the former M played by Judi Dench who was killed in the last film.

M’s message, recorded before her death, brings Bond in contact with an evil organization headed by a sinister villain played by Christoph Waltz. At the same time, Bond has to deal with a new intelligence program which threatens the future of the 00 agency.

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Burnt review

Director:
John Wells
Cast:
Bradley Cooper
Sienna Miller
Daniel Bruhl
Riccardo Scamarcio
Sam Keely
Rated: R

Bradley Cooper is Adam Jones in “Burnt,” a chef who became famous in Paris for his talent before hitting hard times as an alcoholic and drug addict. The movie begins, though, with Jones being a sober, more humble version of himself, ready to return to the culinary world.

To do so, Jones goes to London, and through some of his connections (although they are reluctant) opens a new restaurant with the hope of attaining the coveted third Michelin Star.

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